In The End
by ObliviousTrace
Summary: The final battle, a final conversation, a few truths she didn't want to hear.


In The End

_In the end, none will stand. Many will die and many, many more will live, but none will be standing. _

"You killed him."

The other woman lay sprawled on the ground, spitting dirt out of her mouth.

"If I did or not, what's it to you, Granger? Thought you hated each other."

Hermione's wand shook in her outstretched hand.

"Get up," she said through clenched teeth. "Get up and fight, you bitch."

Pansy's laugh grated on her ears.

"Going to be all noble, mudblood? Going to do the proper Gryffindor thing and give me one last chance to defend myself? Your nobility just kills me."

The brunette smirked. "No, _I_ plan on killing you. Just as soon as I make you suffer. Now get up!"

Pansy laughed again then, in a swift movement, she lunged to the side and grabbed the wand that lay next to her, blasting a curse towards Hermione as she scrambled up.

"_Crucio__!"_

Hermione was almost caught off guard by the other woman's speed, but she soon recovered.

"_Protego__!"_

The shield shuddered under the power of the curse, but even though Pansy Parkinson was a feared opponent, Hermione's magic was stronger. Pansy laughed again, hysterically, leaning against a nearby tree for support. The Hogwarts grounds were nearly unrecognizable, torn apart by the brutal battle taking place. Bodies littered the ground as curses and hexes flew overhead. The sky had turned a dangerous crimson, making it impossible to distinguish whether it was day or night. The battle had raged for hours. Hermione had lost count of how many lives she had taken, how many friends she had seen die. Except for one.

"Why?" She asked, her voice quavering with rage and the wailing she was struggling to suppress. "You cared for him once."

"Once? God, Granger, do you think I would give a shit whether or not he decided to switch sides if I hadn't cared?" Pansy's dark eyes glinted with an emotion Hermione found hard to place. "He abandoned our side and he abandoned me."

"He didn't want to have fight with you. He never did."

"Did a pretty good job of convincing you all of that fact, didn't he? A couple of tears, some groveling, throw in St. Potter's good word, and suddenly Draco's a bloody fucking hero for the light." She shook her head slowly, dangerously. Hermione watched her carefully for any sign that she might attack. "He was scared. He was scared and he didn't have the balls to believe in anything, so he chose the side that he knew would win."

"That's not true!" Even Hermione was surprised at the emotion that ripped out of her throat. Pansy blinked.

"Well, does the little mudblood have something she wants to share? A secret crush?"

Hermione swallowed hard. "It means nothing to the likes of you."

"You loved him."

"I could have."

"Well, I did, which made him mine. Mine to keep."

"Not to kill, though."

Pansy shrugged, wincing as she did so. Hermione noticed this and shifted her gaze to the shorter woman's shoulders. There was a deep gash on the left one, bleeding profusely. Pansy was starting to look pale.

"He was always mine."

Hermione's hands curled into fists and her throat burned. "I was the one to find his body, you know. I saw what you did to him."

For the first time, Pansy's shell seemed to crack. She glanced away slightly.

"That wasn't me," she whispered. "I did what I was supposed to, nothing more. I killed him quickly and simply and that was it."

"That was it!" Hermione's voice cracked as it rose. "The only thing recognizable was his hair, do you know that? We had to cast a spell, see who it was, who it had been before…" she stopped and closed her eyes briefly, before remembering that she was standing on a battlefield. She quickly opened them again, but Pansy had not moved. She stared straight at Hermione.

"I had nothing to do with that. Some of his friends, they took his betrayal personally. They…decided to have some fun."

Hermione mouthed the word 'fun' soundlessly, her grip tightening around her wand.

"Why did you kill him?" she asked again, expecting a futile answer but needing to understand.

Pansy snorted. "Why did you kill all those Death Eaters today? He was an enemy, enemies have to die. That's the way."

"Not if you care about someone! Not if you…if you really…"

"Why did Snape kill Dumbledore?" Pansy shot back, her jaw set. "You all thought that was a betrayal, but no, that was another one against us. You think that Snape didn't care? Sometimes you do what you have to."

"Then why?" Her voice was soft and feeble, emotionless.

The dark-haired woman rolled her eyes.

"Because I loved him, you mudblood idiot. Because I had to."

Hermione shook her head.

"You didn't. You could have come to us, you could have run, you could have just bloody not killed him!"

Pansy chuckled again, entirely without mirth. "You'll never understand, will you Granger?"

"No." Hermione raised her wand. "And I don't think I want to." She drew in a breath to utter the spell. Pansy stood motionless. Hermione opened her mouth to say the words and was knocked off her feet.

Sound roared around them until all they could do was crouch on the ground and hold their heads as blinding, piercing light filled every inch of their minds. There was one moment when everything hung suspended, when suddenly the light disappeared again. Complete silence reigned.

Hermione lifted her head slowly, gazing towards the lake shore where the light had come from, where she knew Harry had been facing Voldemort the final time.

"It's over," she whispered.

She heard a rustling near her and she turned to see Pansy nearby, struggling to stand. She swallowed, tasting blood and dust in her mouth.

"Who won?"

Pansy shakily attempted to get to her feet and toppled back down. She swore softly.

"Granger, you bleeding idiot." She rolled over onto her back and covered her face with her dirty hands. Her shoulders shook with laughter or tears, Hermione couldn't make out which. "Nobody won. It doesn't matter if Potter's alive or the Dark Lord's alive, _nobody won_."

And there was nothing Hermione could say to that.


End file.
